Vojvoda relieved after win, urges Santos to improve at set pieces | OneFootball

On Sunday afternoon, Santos defeated Noroeste 2-1 in the seventh round of the Campeonato Paulista. The result keeps Santos alive in the race for the G8, which grants qualification to the quarterfinals of the competition. Coach Pablo Vojvoda explained the team’s formation for the match and admitted that the squad struggled at the end, even with a numerical advantage. He also commented that the victory lifts a “weight” off the group’s shoulders.

“We started with a system of five defenders, four players ahead of this line, and only one forward. After the sending off, we held onto the ball more, but it’s true that we suffered at the end with set pieces. It had been a long time since we’d won, and that affects the players’ mindset. We got that weight off our backs; there were other factors involved, such as our position in the standings. It’s always tough to play away from home in the State Championship,” he said.

Weakness in Aerial Play

Santos struggled with Noroeste’s set pieces, as even with one man down, Noroeste managed to threaten with aerial balls and forced goalkeeper Gabriel Brazão to work to prevent the equalizer. Vojvoda stated that the team needs to improve in this area and revealed a change in their set-piece defense. Additionally, he praised the team’s ability to “know how to suffer.”

“It’s an important part of the game and we are working hard on this aspect. We changed our defensive set-piece setup and we keep changing it when we see we don’t have players who are strong in the air. We’re always open to improvement because that’s how it should be. Regarding offense, we improved last year by winning matches with set-piece goals and we continue in the same way,” he said.

“The instruction for the players was that we needed to circulate the ball quickly since they were a man down. At halftime, I said we needed to kill the game by creating chances. Set pieces are the only component where, even with one less player, the number of players is equal. We had to suffer and, in football, not just Santos but all teams have to know how to suffer,” he added.

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Regarding performances, the Argentine praised youngster Gabriel Bontempo’s first half, but emphasized that the young player still needs to develop. In addition, Rony was also praised by the coach, who said he is still getting to know the forward.

“It was a good first half from Bontempo. I push him a lot in training, I like this type of player, I talk to him privately and publicly as well. He’s a great player, but he needs to develop in many aspects and he needs to feel that. He has to have a good first half, a good second half, and I tell him he can’t just knock on the door to ask for a starting spot—he has to knock the door down,” he assessed.

“Rony scored, he’s a player who gives us a lot in every aspect. He attacks depth and creates space between the lines for other players who need to float and receive the ball. We’re getting to know him and he’s getting to know the team,” he concluded.

Next Match

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.